SERMON NOTES
PRAYER
Lord,
Thank you for today. Thank you for how good and how faithful You have been to me this week. Thank you for Your Word and the gift and presence of your Holy Spirit. Thank you for my Church family!
This morning, I want all that You have for me and for my life. I also pray Your blessing and favor on the person next to me. Soften my heart to your Spirit this morning.
In Jesus’ good and loving name.
Amen
KEY SCRIPTURE
Romans 5:3-4; 8:28-29 & Galatians 5:22-23
…we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope.
28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. 29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control.
Against such things there is no law.
“The chief end of man is to know & love God, to make Him known and enjoy Him forever.” – Westminster Catechism
Purpose #3
You Were Created to Become Like Jesus!
Colossians 1:19-20
19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
In other words…
Romans 5:3-4
…we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope.
Hebrews 5:8-10
8 Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered 9 and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him 10 and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.
Romans 8:28-29
28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
Galatians 5:22-23
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control.
Against such things there is no law.
Luke 6:32
If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even those who don’t believe God love those who love them.
“God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us (Rom. 5:5)… It is the love of God flowing through us - not our human attempts at behavioral change….”
– Dallas Willard
1 Corinthians 10:13
No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.
"We must choose godly suffering. Sometimes people have difficulty understanding when they should suffer and when they should avoid it.
A person in a difficult relationship may endure abuse, thinking that this is part of the path of suffering when actually this suffering can injure a person’s soul and also help their abuser stay immature.
Some suffering needs to be avoided.
Jesus is a wonderful example of embracing needful suffering and rejecting that which was not.
He understood that pain must have a purpose. He chose the path of the cross because of the through fruit it would bear for all of us. Yet he refused to enter suffering that would be inappropriate to his purposes."
Lord,
Thank you for today. Thank you for how good and how faithful You have been to me this week. Thank you for Your Word and the gift and presence of your Holy Spirit. Thank you for my Church family!
This morning, I want all that You have for me and for my life. I also pray Your blessing and favor on the person next to me. Soften my heart to your Spirit this morning.
In Jesus’ good and loving name.
Amen
KEY SCRIPTURE
Romans 5:3-4; 8:28-29 & Galatians 5:22-23
…we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope.
28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. 29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control.
Against such things there is no law.
“The chief end of man is to know & love God, to make Him known and enjoy Him forever.” – Westminster Catechism
- God gets tremendous joy and pleasure than when you live out His purpose for your life!
- God is forming a Spiritual Family, a “Forever Family” – a family connected not by the DNA in our blood but by the Blood of Jesus!
Purpose #3
You Were Created to Become Like Jesus!
Colossians 1:19-20
19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
In other words…
- If you are a Christian, one of God’s Purposes for Your Life is that You Become Like Jesus!
- Being “like” Jesus means you reflect, albeit an imperfect reflection, the life and character of Jesus!
- Becoming like Jesus is actually something done to you, in you & for you and for those around you, but it is not by you!
Romans 5:3-4
…we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope.
- Anything worth Becoming requires some level of suffering.
- Satan wants you to suffer to discourage and destroy you!
- God allows suffering for a Purpose - to Become More Like Jesus!
Hebrews 5:8-10
8 Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered 9 and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him 10 and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.
Romans 8:28-29
28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
Galatians 5:22-23
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control.
Against such things there is no law.
- Becoming like Jesus is not something you do… it’s something done in you, to you and for you.
- We become like Jesus by the power and work of the Holy Spirit in our lives – or what is called sanctification!
Luke 6:32
If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even those who don’t believe God love those who love them.
“God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us (Rom. 5:5)… It is the love of God flowing through us - not our human attempts at behavioral change….”
– Dallas Willard
1 Corinthians 10:13
No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.
"We must choose godly suffering. Sometimes people have difficulty understanding when they should suffer and when they should avoid it.
A person in a difficult relationship may endure abuse, thinking that this is part of the path of suffering when actually this suffering can injure a person’s soul and also help their abuser stay immature.
Some suffering needs to be avoided.
Jesus is a wonderful example of embracing needful suffering and rejecting that which was not.
He understood that pain must have a purpose. He chose the path of the cross because of the through fruit it would bear for all of us. Yet he refused to enter suffering that would be inappropriate to his purposes."
- How People Grow, Cloud & Townsend
- Part of Becoming Like Jesus is understanding the difference between pain that helps you grow and needless pain that causes unhealthy wounds.